BWF announces World Juniors group draw; India in Group H

India will face Hong Kong China, Nepal, and Ghana in Group H of the BWF World Junior Championships 2025. A new relay format debuts as the tournament returns to India after 17 years

Hyderabad: The Badminton World Federation (BWF) on Friday announced the draw for the BWF World Junior Championships 2025 – Suhandinata Cup (Mixed Team Event), to be held at the National Centre of Excellence, Amingaon, Guwahati, from October 6 to 11.

Second-seeded India will compete in Group H alongside Hong Kong China, Nepal, and Ghana.

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This prestigious global junior team event returns to India for the first time since 2008 and will feature 37 teams from across the world. The tournament format will see the winner from each group advance to the quarterfinals.

Top seeds Thailand are drawn in Group A with Denmark, Slovenia, and Cook Islands. Defending champions Indonesia are placed in Group C with Türkiye, Romania, and the Netherlands, while 14-time champions China will face Japan, Singapore, Brazil, and Bhutan in Group E.

This year, a new relay format will be tested in the competition. In the new format, there will be a best-of-three sets system, where a team reaching 45 points in a relay format wins a set. A set will consist of men’s singles, women’s singles, men’s doubles, women’s doubles, and mixed doubles matches. The first match ends when one team reaches nine points, and the next match then begins. Earlier, the relay format involved a single set with a race to 110 points across 10 matches.

For the Indian team, medal winners from the Badminton Asia Junior Championships 2025 will gain direct entry, while the remaining spots will be decided through a selection trial from August 9 to 13 at the same venue. Players eligible for the trials include those meeting the BAI ranking cut-offs, Indian shuttlers ranked in the BWF World Junior Top 20, and juniors ranked in the BWF Senior Top 50 as of July 29, 2025.

All players selected in the Indian team for the WONDR Badminton Asia Junior Championships 2025 are also invited for the trials, except the medalists who already have direct entry.

Following the Suhandinata Cup, the individual events will also be staged in Guwahati from October 13 to 19 at the National Centre of Excellence.